Ninja Van, Southeast Asia’s leading tech-driven logistics company, launched PR-as-a-Service (PRaaS) in March. This move raised many eyebrows, especially among those in the public relations (PR) industry. The top question on everyone’s mind is: Why?
To satisfy curiosity, we reached out to Wu Yingying, Regional Head of Content and Marketing Communications, to find out the motivations behind this new service, how it positions itself against competitors in the same field and more.
What motivated Ninja Van to launch the PR-as-a-Service for SMEs in Singapore as it seems like a clash with the main business?
E-commerce started in Southeast Asia in 2011 when marketplaces such as Lazada and ZALORA started coming in. This triggered the growth of ancillary services in the ecosystem, such as Logistics.
Being there from the start of e-commerce gave Ninja Van a front-row seat to Southeast Asia’s (SEA) e-commerce evolution. This allowed Ninja Van to use its unique position to support its shippers beyond logistics, rolling out services that will meet their needs and plug the gaps they face.
PR-as-a-Service (PRaaS) is one of these latest value-added services to supercharge shippers’ growth beyond logistics.
What sets Ninja Van’s PR as a service apart from other PR agencies in Singapore?
The biggest differences are:
- PRaaS is only available to businesses shipping with Ninja Van Singapore and Malaysia
- The PR services are free
What are Ninja Van’s plans to support and empower SMEs in Singapore?
In a world where businesses are constantly vying for attention, finding ways to make their e-commerce business stand out is crucial. PR is a tool to help shippers create brand recognition, build credibility, and manage brand reputation, thereby achieving their business goals.
PRaaS is now available to shippers in Singapore and Malaysia. Businesses shipping with Ninja Van in these countries will get to enjoy free PR services from media release development and dissemination to event support.
PRaaS also joins the existing suite of value-added services that Ninja Van rolled out in SEA to supercharge shippers’ growth beyond logistics.
Last year, Ninja Van announced the launch of Creative Hub in various cities across Indonesia to provide shippers with creative, digital and social media marketing solutions. Some of the solutions include professional photography and videography services to enrich shippers’ catalogues.
Other services in Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore include masterclasses with various experts to impart business tips and tricks to shippers, the latest being a session on in-depth insights into online shoppers and useful marketing strategies to target them.
With our dominance in Southeast Asian e-commerce logistics, Ninja Van continues to nurture an ecosystem that provides value-added services and tools to support shippers in scaling their businesses.
What PR services will Ninja Van offer to SMEs in Singapore and how will they be made accessible and affordable to them?
Businesses shipping with Ninja Van Singapore and Malaysia will get to enjoy free PR services. These services will be provided by Ninja Van’s in-house communications team – fully equipped to provide shippers with the PR support that they need to stand out from the crowd.
PRaaS is now available on Ninja Rewards – a loyalty programme where shippers can earn points to redeem attractive rewards and exclusive services.
Shippers in the Silver, Gold and Platinum tier can redeem free PR services they are eligible for, which include:
- Media release development
- Media engagement
- Influencer engagement
- Creative media drop
- Media event support
What are the biggest challenges that Ninja Van anticipates in rolling out this new service and how does the company plan to overcome them?
PR can easily go unnoticed, or passed over for its more popular and visible counterparts like marketing and advertising. There are business owners who are not aware of what PR is or don’t think their business is large enough to require PR, while there are others who know the importance of PR but are unsure of how to go about doing it.
No matter what size or stage of growth a business might be in, PR is a tool to help them create brand recognition, build credibility, and manage brand reputation, thereby achieving their business goals.
Since rolling out PRaaS, we have been working with shippers who have expressed interest to explore what PR can do for their businesses. Aligning with Ninja Van’s desire to support SME businesses in their PR efforts, we will be sharing some PR tips and tricks on our blogs and social media too.
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